


royals

by sincerelyjeno



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Falling In Love, Kissing, Love Confessions, M/M, Multi, Strangers to Lovers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-11
Updated: 2020-05-17
Packaged: 2021-03-02 04:28:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23599117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sincerelyjeno/pseuds/sincerelyjeno
Summary: a single forgotten binding spell emerges from the shadows and promptly interrupts everyone's lives
Relationships: Huang Ren Jun/Mark Lee, Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Na Jaemin, Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Zhong Chen Le, Lee Jeno/Park Jisung
Comments: 11
Kudos: 49





	1. the letter

“Mark hyung, don’t be dumb. You can’t just not tell him this.” Jisung said while following his mentor quickly down the corridor of the castle. 

“I know! Jisung, I know. But I can’t just tell him this yet. He has things that he needs to focus on. For the better of the kingdom.” Mark said in a hushed tone to his friend and apprentice. 

Jisung sighed at the man that he looked up to. Sometimes he was the smart one, even though he was younger. 

“Hyung, he is your damn husband. It’s his job to worry about you and your business. Especially when it’s business that has begun to affect your health.” 

Mark looked at Jisung in shock. “You noticed?”

Jisung snorted. “You taught me every trick in the book, of course, I can see you trying to mask the tiredness in your face.” 

Jisung was learning quickly; soon enough, the student Mark had spent his time teaching would no longer need his guidance. 

“Jisung-ah, I know I need to tell him, but not right now. He’s nervous to meet his old friend.” Mark sighed while rubbing his eyes. He looked up to see Jisung looking at him worried. He quickly threw on a smile to appease his young friend. “Come along Sung, we have places to be.” 

Jisung sighed as he watched his hyung walk away from him, that man was going to give him gray hair one day. 

—

“All rise for the honorable King Jeno.” 

Renjun quickly drew in a breath before standing up from his throne. He was seeing his old friend for the first time in years, and he was nervous as fuck. He turned to his right to see Mark, with Jisung standing just behind him. He locked eyes with Mark, who had been looking at him this entire time. Mark raised his eyebrow with a smirk before winking at his husband. 

Quickly Renjun averted his eyes before he could get drawn into his husband's eyes. Flirty Mark didn’t happen often, but when it did happen it made Renjun nervous and he didn’t need to be more nervous right now. 

Renjun trained his eyes forward where he saw his old friend walking gracefully down the middle of the throne room to where Renjun was standing. 

Renjun’s lips broke into a smile at Jeno as he instantly returned one whilst speeding up slightly to eliminate the space between them.

Renjun stepped down from his throne to be able to hug his best friend.

“Who would’ve thought that this is where we would be, huh Junnie?” Jeno whispered in his ear. 

With an airy laugh, Renjun pulled back, “It's good to see you, Jen.”

The last time that Renjun had seen his best friend was when he came to Renjun’s wedding, and even then all they got was a quick greeting. 

Jeno turned to where Mark and Jisung were standing, Jeno loved Mark and loved that his best friend found an amazing person to get married too. Jeno walked over to pull Mark into a hug as well. 

While he saw his best friend and husband chatting he felt a tap on his shoulder, turning to see his royal adviser, Donghyuck. 

“Your Highness, you have nothing to do for the rest of the day, except for meeting with King Jeno,” Donghyuck said quickly. 

“Yes, thank you Donghyuck, is there a reason that you are telling me this now?” Renjun said with an eyebrow quirk. 

“Renjun— Chenle is sick and he sent me to work anyways and I’m worried. Can I be excused?” Donghyuck said with a sigh. 

Renjun laughed, oh his lovely stubborn friend Chenle. “Yes Hyuck, you can be excused. Make sure to take care of your husband.” Renjun said, still chuckling. 

Donghyuck let out a breath of relief, “Thank you Jun. Have fun with your friend!” Donghyuck said while rushing out of the throne room.

Renjun laughed at his friend before shaking his head and turning to his friends and husband, “Jeno!” he called out.

Jeno turned to look at Renjun with a smile, “Yes?”

“Let’s go, I want to gossip without my husband listening in!”

Jeno and Jisung both laughed while Mark yelled out an offended “Hey!” 

“Alright buddy, let's go.” Jeno left Mark and Jisung with a giggle. 

“Bye love!” Mark called to Renjun’s back, Renjun turned to blow a kiss to his husband. Mark pretended to catch the kiss to Renjun’s amusement. 

After Renjun and Jeno had left the throne room, Mark quickly elbowed Jisung in the ribs. 

“OW! Hyung what the hell?” Jisung said, rubbing his side. 

“I saw you blushing when the king came over,” Mark said in a teasing tone. 

“I-I don’t know what you are talking about,” Jisung said while looking down. 

Mark laughed. “Jisungieeeee how long have you been crushing on the king?!” Mark was so giddy. His young friend had never shown interest in anyone before. 

Jisung sighed. “I met him at your wedding. We talked the night of the reception. I’ve been thinking about him ever since.” Jisung really didn’t want to talk about this with Mark. He was so embarrassed. 

Mark continued to tease him as they made their way to their workshop. Jisung continued to fight his ever-growing blush as they were walking. Sometimes he forgot that his hyung wasn’t that much older than him, and then he would do something like continue to tease him over his crush. Jisung shook his head while pushing Mark and then taking off in a sprint. Mark let out a loud laugh before chasing after him.

—

Jeno was laughing at the stories that Renjun was telling him of when Mark first started courting him.

“Oh gosh and then there was the time that he accidentally got hit with a love potion and fell in love with a visiting prince,” Renjun said while chuckling. 

“He… WHAT?!” Jeno said while trying to catch his breath from laughing so hard. “Which prince?”

Renjun laughed at his old friend, “Prince Jaehyun, that was one of the worst and funniest moments of my life.” Renjun said while smiling softly.

“One of the worst?” Jeno asked while cocking his head to the side in curiosity.

“Yeah. I thought I was going to lose the love of my life. It scared the hell out of me. Then we found out it was a love potion and we quickly got it fixed. Jaehyun helped a lot actually.” Renjun said while shaking his head at the memory.

“Good ol’ Jaehyun hyung.” Jeno said with a chuckle. Jeno leaned down to grab his cup to take a drink. Setting it back down he says, “You and Mark are so amazing.”

Renjun dusts pink at the sudden compliment. “Oh, thanks Jeno.”

“No! I’m serious Junnie! I want a love like yours someday.” Jeno said with a wistful look in his eyes.

“And you will Jen! You are going to be an amazing husband to someone someday. But why do you say this now? Has someone caught your eye?” Renjun said with a chuckle, he quickly noticed that Jeno has stopped moving, “Wait, Jeno, is there seriously someone that has caught your eye?” Renjun said sitting up straighter and with wide eyes.

Jeno blushed and coughed, “There is someone that I have developed a liking for,” Jeno said while trying to avoid eye contact. 

Renjun squealed, “Wait, Jeno! That’s so cute! Who is it?! Do I know them?” Renjun said in what seemed like one breath.

Jeno blushed even harder, “Yeah, you do know them…” He trailed off beginning to feel more nervous as time went on. 

“Jeno!! Who is it?” Renjun was practically vibrating with excitement. His best friend had a crush on someone and he couldn’t hold back his happiness. Jeno mumbled something under his breath. “What Jen? I didn’t catch that?”

“It’s Jisung,” Jeno blurted out.

Renjun paused, before launching into another set of squeals. “Like Mark’s Jisung? My Jisung?” 

Jeno nodded while blushing furiously. “We met at your wedding and hung out the whole time. We even danced. I wanted to kiss him but I wimped out at the last moment. He has been stuck in my head ever since.” 

Renjun cooed at his blushing friend, “Well I think you should start to court him. He is the sweetest boy and deserves someone good and who will love him." 

Renjun truly cared for Jisung and accepted him into his family ever since the moment that Mark announced the young boy as his apprentice. 

Jeno looked up at Renjun shyly, “That was actually the other reason that validated me pushing this trip to be earlier, I wanted to begin the courting process with him.” 

Renjun started to clap his hands with glee, “Oh my gosh Jen! You two will fit so well together! I’m so happy!” 

Jeno giggled, “You really think he will accept me?” Jeno looked the most vulnerable that Renjun had seen him in years. 

Renjun made his way to his best friend, leaning down to wrap his arms around him in a hug, “I truly believe that he will accept you in courtship,” Jeno quickly tightened his arms around Renjun in thanks.

Jeno pulled back and looked at his best friend before laughing with glee, “Oh gosh Junnie, I really like him.” 

Renjun laughed back, “That’s so cute Jen. I’m happy for you,” He glanced up and saw the time. “Oh, Jen! We have to run! Lunch is starting soon.”

The two friends quickly ran out of the room that they were sitting in, making their way to the dining hall so that they wouldn’t leave everyone waiting long.

—

Mark and Jisung were sitting at the table waiting for the two members of royalty to arrive. Jisung was still trying to get through to Mark.

“Hyung, he will be mad that you waited so long to tell him,” Jisung whispered as the staff was walking around the pair.

Mark rubbed his forehead, “Jisung, I know that but I can’t just tell him, ‘Hey remember the guy that I magically fell in love with? Yeah, he needs help and has requested mine.’ You guys never fully told me what happened while I was under the spell, I just know that I was under it.” Mark said back quietly.

Jisung sighed. It was Renjun’s idea to not tell Mark what happened that week. For good reason, if Mark knew what he had done and said he would never forgive himself. Jisung just wished that he could get through to his friend.

The door slammed open as both Renjun and Jeno rushed into the room panting. Mark and Jisung quickly arose to greet the pair.

Renjun walked over to the seat that was next to his husband and leaned over to lightly peck him on the lips. Mark smiled at his husband before turning to Jeno and lightly bowing at the visiting king.

Renjun cleared his throat, “Please be seated,” Mark had his spot right next to Renjun at the head of the table, Jisung was immediately next to Mark as well. Jeno opted to take the seat right across from Jisung, smiling lightly at the younger boy. 

Renjun lightly tapped Mark’s foot with his and once he had his husband’s attention he gestured to the pair with a small grin. Mark immediately saw the shy glances and small smiles that were being exchanged. He turned to Renjun and winked at him, just to let him know that he was also aware. The married couple was getting an idea and they were excited for their friends.

“So Mark, Jisung, what were you two working on?” Renjun began as the first course of their meal was being served.

Jisung quickly cleared his throat while looking to Mark for permission to answer. Mark gave a nod for an indication for him to begin speaking. “We just worked on medical potions orders for citizens,” Mark gave a noise of agreement.

“That’s quite interesting. Do you work with medicine often?” Jeno asked while looking at Jisung with extreme curiosity in his eyes.

Jisung turned red under the attention, so Mark decided to save him, “Jisung here wants to specialize in medical magic when he is done with his apprenticeship. So doing medical potions is one of his favorite things that we do.” Jisung smiled at his hyung with thankfulness.

“That’s amazing! How much longer do you have to be an apprentice?” Jeno asked, looking at Jisung still. This time though both Mark and Renjun could more clearly see the admiration in his eyes.

Jisung, still quite red, responded quietly, “Just one more year.” Jisung then turned to look at Mark and they both shared a bittersweet smile. 

Renjun knew that the topic was a hard one for the two wizards and that it hurt to talk about, so he tried to change the subject quickly. “Jisung, have you been hanging out with Chenle in the gardens?”

Jisung quickly nodded while gulping down the bite of food that he had taken, “Yes! I have been helping him grow plants with magic, hyung,” Jisung lit up at the mention of his best friend.

Mark turned to Jeno with a smile, “Jisung’s best friend is the royal gardener and they have been trying to see how they can help the palace gardens with magic,” Mark chuckled at the look on Jeno’s face. He appeared to be relieved and happy to find out that Chenle was just a friend.

“Hyuck actually asked to leave early because Chenle is sick right now,” Renjun added to the conversation.

Mark snorted, “Is that why I haven’t been nagged all day? I was wondering why it was so quiet.” 

Renjun lightly slapped his husband’s shoulder, “If I didn’t know any better I would think that you two hated each other.”

Mark laughed at the annoyed look on his husband’s face, “You know Hyuckie is my best friend. He just deserves this teasing for constantly being on my back for not acting like a proper husband of a crown prince,” He grabbed Renjun’s hand and brought it up to his lips and pressed a light kiss to the back of it.

Jisung smiled at his hyungs before looking across the table just to catch Jeno looking at him with soft eyes. Jisung quickly averted eye contact, willing the blush off of his face.

“Jisung,” 

Jisung looked up in shock to see that the king was looking at him with a smile on his face. He took a deep breath.

“Y-yes your majesty?” Jisung cursed himself for his stupid stutter that only managed to come out around someone like Jeno.

Jeno laughed lightly, “You can call me Hyung, Jisung.”

Jisung nodded slowly, “O-okay. Yes, hyung?”

Jeno smiled, “Would you walk me around the gardens after lunch?” Jisung could hear the hope in the king's voice and it made him both nervous and excited.

Jisung giggled shyly, “Of course hyung, I would be happy too!” 

Mark and Renjun were loving the shy flirting that they were being able to witness. Mark felt a hand grab his, he turned to see his husband smiling at him.

Renjun leaned over to be able to whisper in Mark’s ear, “Reminds me of us.” 

Mark snorted at the observation, he nodded quickly in agreement while winking at his husband. 

Turning their attention back to the awkward pair, they saw that they were quickly trying to finish their meals.

Jisung had turned to Mark, “Hyung, can I-”

Mark quickly interrupted his young friend, “Of course Jisung, in fact, take the rest of the day off. We already finished what we planned to do.”

Jisung grinned at Mark. Trust Mark to always be in his corner and be a helpful hyung. While Jisung and Mark were talking, Renjun and Jeno were having their own conversation. 

“Are you going to ask him today?” Renjun whispered under his breath to the other royal. 

Jeno smiled shyly and nodded, “Why not? It’s better to do it earlier than wait and lose an opportunity.”

Renjun smiled widely at his friend before turning back to his food, the meal quickly wrapped up and the giddy pair stood up so that they could make their exit to the gardens. Mark and Renjun watched as Jeno offered his arm to Jisung so that he could escort them out of the room. Mark giggled at the blush that took over Jisung’s face.

Renjun turned to his husband, “So, what should we do if it’s just us?”

Mark smiled, “I actually need to talk to you, the King, about some things.”

Renjun groaned playfully, “Very well. Shall we head to our chambers?” Mark nodded with a soft smile. The couple rose to make their exit from the dining hall. The pair grabbed each other’s hands and walked out of the room hand in hand.

—

Jisung didn’t know how to feel while walking through the gardens with the man that he had feelings for. He wanted to hold Jeno’s hand, but he didn’t think that would be appropriate so he was just showing the King around and was talking about the plants. 

Jeno was smiling softly at the younger man and was just enjoying being with him. He was trying to find the perfect time to ask Jisung if he could court him. He was nervous but excited.

He saw a bench up ahead one the path that was underneath a tree. Jeno smiled and lightly grabbed Jisung’s arm to direct him towards the bench.

Jisung’s eyes widened at the slight touch that made his heart soar. Jisung followed the King and sat down first before looking up with wide eyes at Jeno. Jeno smiled before he took a seat right next to Jisung. Jeno was nervous, he would never admit that but he was extremely nervous. 

“Jisung, I have a question,” Jeno said while reaching out to grab Jisung’s hand.

Jisung gulped before intertwining his fingers with King’s, “Yes hyung?”

Jeno gulped, “I know that we haven’t known each other for long and that the first time that we met was at the wedding of your King. I just know that I felt something that night and I really hope that you felt something as well.”

Jisung’s breath hitched because of the words that the King was saying. He was sure that he knew what Jeno was insinuating, but he couldn’t be certain. He needed to hear Jeno say the words out loud. 

“I did feel something hyung. I truly did,” Jisung whispered softly. Jisung could feel his cheeks grow hotter from the blush that was beginning to take over his face. He truly hoped that they were on the same page with what was happening. 

“Jisung, I have romantic feelings toward you. I was wondering if you would give me the pleasure of courting you?” Jeno rushed out. 

Jisung froze. He wasn’t expecting that. He was expecting a possible confession, not an outright proposal. Jisung was raised to not accept a courtship offer unless he was planning on marrying the person. Jisung could feel all the blood rush to his head and he began to breathe heavily. 

Jeno quickly noticed and promptly began to freak out, “Jisung! Jisung, did I do something wrong? Jisung. Sungie. Talk to me bubs.”

Jisung could feel tears well up in his eyes. Here he was leaving the guy that just confessed to him without an answer and yet he was comforting Jisung. He began to laugh quietly. This whole situation was insane. A King just asked if he could court Jisung, and here Jisung sat on the verge of a panic attack. 

“You obviously don’t have to answer me just yet, I would completely understand if you wanted to think about this. This is a tough question and you shouldn’t answer it lightly, I’m sorry that I just sprung it on yo-“

“Yes.”

Jeno stopped his rambling with his eyes snapping up to meet Jisung’s. Jeno saw that Jisung was smiling widely at him with little stars dancing around his eyes. Jeno’s breath hitched at the fact that he was the one witnessing this, and he thanked every deity that there was that he was the one blessed to be on the opposite side of that stare. 

“What?!” Jeno exclaimed, not truly believing what he was hearing. 

Jisung let out a giggle and scrunched up his nose, “Hyung, it would be an honor to be courted by you.”

Jeno wasted no time in grabbing Jisung by the waist and pulling him into a big hug. The two boys were laughing and silently tearing up. Jisung pulled away from Jeno slowly and lowered his gaze down to the other's lips quickly before he put his attention back on Jeno’s eyes. 

Jeno noticed the quick peek and smiled softly, “Jisung. Do I have permission to kiss you?”

Jisung nodded slowly at the words. Jeno leaned in and brushed his lips over the younger’s and waited for Jisung to complete the kiss. Jisung wrapped his arms around the royal’s neck and pulled him closer. Jeno quickly rested his hands on Jisung’s hips so that he could deepen the kiss. 

The two were enjoying the sunshine basking down on them as they had their first kiss. Jisung pulled back slightly so that he could catch his breath and made eye contact with a kiss-drunk Jeno that was staring at him with wide eyes. The two giggled, high on affection for the other. 

—

Mark was sitting in his chair next to Renjun listening to him rant about the new knights and how some of them were too stuck up. He was trying to find a good way to break the news to his husband. There was no good way, but he really didn’t want to fight. 

“Mark, what’s bugging you?” Renjun’s voice interrupted Mark’s thoughts, snapping him out of his daydream. 

“Nothing big. I’m just trying to figure out a way to approach this,” Mark needed to be honest. If he lied then Renjun would really be mad, and Mark didn’t want to deal with an angry husband. 

“Mark. Dear, you can tell me anything. You know this,” Renjun was extremely confused as to what Mark could be keeping from him that was causing him this much distress. 

“I know that Jun. I’m just scared of how you will react towards the people that will be involved,” Renjun cocks his head to the side in confusion. He genuinely has no clue as to what Mark could be talking about. 

“Dear, that makes no sense. You know that I have no enemies. Well, no enemies that are alive.” 

“I know that. You are still human though,” Mark said while playing with Renjun’s fingers. 

“Oh for heaven’s sake Mark, just tell me,” Renjun was getting impatient with how his husband was beating around the bush. 

“I got a letter today,” Mark said quickly. 

“Okay, and?”

“It was from Prince Jaehyun." Renjun froze. Of all the people that Mark would have said the letter was from, Prince Jaehyun was at the bottom of the list. 

“What did Prince Jaehyun want?” Renjun asks in a clipped tone. 

“He asked for my help. He was supposed to be betrothed to someone and bad luck just kept happening. They found out that he accidentally ended up in a binding spell when he was younger. He cannot marry someone that is not in the binding spell. The magic won’t allow it. That means that it is—“

“It’s fairy magic,” Renjun cut off Mark with a sigh. If any mortal sorcerer knew about fairy magic, it was definitely Mark. 

“I’m probably the only one that can help them track down the fairies that possibly cast the spell,” Mark said while still holding Renjun’s hand. 

“Do they know who he is bonded to?” Renjun asked while rubbing his forehead with his unoccupied hand. 

Mark shook his head while sighing, “No. That’s another reason why they asked me.”

Renjun nodded while closing his eyes tightly, “When do you head out to help them?”

Mark smiled softly at his husband, “Three days.”

Renjun groaned while standing up so that he could move to sit on Mark’s lap. Mark quickly wrapped his arms around his husband to pull him closer. Renjun rested his head on the shoulder of his husband and closest confidant. The two were sitting in silence just enjoying each other’s company. 

“I hate when you have to leave,” Renjun said, quietly breaking the silent atmosphere that they had created. 

“I hate leaving you,” Mark responded, leaving a kiss on Renjun’s forehead. 

“Where will you go?” Renjun was curious as to where his husband would end up throughout this journey that he was deciding to go on. 

“I’ll be heading to the prince's castle and meeting up with them. Then I will probably take them to Yuta hyung. He’s the best bet at figuring out who cast the spell,” Mark said while still speaking quietly. 

Renjun grumbled at the mention of Yuta, “Really?”

Mark let out a soft chuckle, “He knows that I’m married, my love.”

“He’s still a fairy. By nature they are tricksters and punks,” Renjun was whining now. Yuta has always had a small crush on Mark and he isn’t afraid to flirt with him. Mark just brushes it off, Renjun cannot. 

“Jun, I am yours. No one will get me,” Mark whispered while kissing on Renjun’s neck. Renjun closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of just being with his husband. His mouth, however, was too fast for his brain to stop him. 

“Unless a love potion gets you,” Mark froze before he lifted his head away from his husband's neck to look up at him in shock. 

“That wasn’t my fault,” Mark said quietly. 

“I know it wasn’t but it happened once, who is to say that it won’t happen again?” Renjun said while massaging at Mark’s scalp. 

“Then it would wear off and I would come back to you. I always come back to you,” Mark said with a slight pleading tone in his voice. He doesn’t know what he did while he was affected by that love potion but what he does know is that it hurt Renjun. 

“Mark, you can't know that,” Renjun said with a sad tone. 

“Yes, I can. I know that I have very intense magic that is constantly coursing through my body and it causes frequent headaches, you are the only person that can stop these headaches. You and your touch. Renjun, you are the love of my life. I married you. Why do you still question it?” Mark was hurt now and Renjun was panicking, knowing that he may have gone too far. 

“Mark. No, no, no, no, angel I’m sorry. I’m not questioning it. I’m just scared. When you got hit with that love potion, I genuinely thought that my life was over. I thought that I lost the best person that ever came into my life and it was terrifying,” while saying all of this Renjun was kissing every inch of Mark’s face that he could reach. 

Mark was smiling softly at his husband, “Listen to me. I will go through heaven and hell, ice and fire, sail oceans and climb mountains just to be by your side. You are never going to get rid of me.”

Renjun felt the tears falling down his face and he smiled with happiness and love, “Mark, I would never want to get rid of you. You can go. Just please stay safe, and please just come home to me when it’s all done. I don’t want a hair on your head harmed.”

“I promise, my King,” Mark said while smirking up at his husband, that had moved so he was straddling Mark’s lap. 

Renjun rolled his eyes at the proper title, “Shut the hell up.”

Renjun leaned down and met his husband in a kiss that took his breath away. Mark smiled into the kiss knowing that they would be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> twitter: @jenobby__  
> My first chaptered fic!! AHHHHH!! I hope that you all enjoy!!


	2. the confrontation

Jaemin was resting against his brother’s throne, trying to keep his eyes open so that he could appear respectful towards the guests that would be coming to the Lunar Territories today. It’s not everyday the son of your family's mortal enemy comes asking for help. He didn’t understand how they could help since it wasn’t explained just how the Prince was cursed, the letter just said that he was cursed with fairy magic and they needed help. The King had practically begged which satisfied Yuta greatly. The King of Cerus hated fairies with a passion and the fact that his son was cursed by one made not only Yuta, but Jaemin feel a bit of joy. Karma wasn’t kind to murderers and it was just nice to be reminded.

“Jaemin,”

He was snapped out of his thoughts by his brother calling out to him, “Yeah, Hyung?”

“I know that Mark will be with them but two of them are still citizens of Cerus, so let me do all of the talking and don’t draw attention to yourself,” Yuta said with a gentle tone. 

“I know, Hyung, I’ll be quiet. I’m just here to be respectful to the visiting royals,” Jaemin said with a smile. Once Yuta sat back on his throne, Jaemin leaned down to slightly kiss his forehead. His brother looked up at him with a wide smile and grabbed Jaemin’s hand so that he could squeeze it in thanks.

Jaemin knew how hard it was on his brother to be thrust onto the throne long before he planned to be there and all he could do was be a good younger brother and not cause more problems. Dealing with ignorant people that hated magic was hard, and it was especially hard on his brother. Jaemin just wanted to be able to be his brother’s rock. A throat was cleared, drawing the attention of the brothers to the front of the room where a smiling Yangyang stood. Jaemin smiled back at his best friend before he made his face go blank. He couldn’t draw attention to himself, meaning that he had to let his charms dim so he wouldn’t distract from the purpose of the meeting.

“Introducing Prince Jaehyun of the Kingdom of Cerus, and guests,” Yangyang said with as professional of a tone as he could muster.

Yuta let out a laugh, “No names?”

Yangyang shook his head with a wide smile, “Mark and Johnny, Hyung.”

Yuta nodded, opening the doors with a wave of his fingers and staring down the three men that made their way through the door. Jaemin locked his eyes on the prince and felt his breath get caught in his throat. That man was the prettiest human that he had ever laid eyes on and now he could understand why a fairy cursed him specifically and not the king. Fairies were a jealous folk, especially of natural beauty. If a human could be beautiful without the help of the charms then it could cause some issues. The prince stood tall next to his two companions and stared Yuta down without wincing. Jaemin quickly glanced over to Mark and caught his eye. The sorcerer smiled and nodded his head in a small bow, which Jaemin returned with a quick smile. Mark had always been nice to the fairies and his wedding had been a fun party for everyone that was invited. Jaemin looked to the other companion who even though was the tallest, seemed the least threatening, and calmest, of the group. 

“Prince Jaehyun, I hear that you have been cursed,” Yuta stated with an almost mocking tone that had Jaemin hitting the throne lightly, not wanting to see a fight break out. 

“I wouldn’t exactly call it a curse,” Mark drew the attention in the room to him when he opened his mouth.

“He can’t get married. Every suitor of his falls ill or gets injured right before or during the meeting to make the arrangements fall through. Sounds like a curse to me,” Yuta said with a confused tone. Jaemin was interested in what the sorcerer had to say about what the Prince seemed to suffer from.

“They said that I have a binding spell put on me. A fairy binding spell,” Jaehyun spoke, voice firm and strong. 

With those words, every fairy in the room froze. Jaemin felt his eyes widen in shock. He heard Yangyang coughing in a corner somewhere, probably trying to catch his breath after such a shocking announcement. Yuta was frozen, and was staring at the prince with his jaw slightly dropped. A binding spell was cast on the prince and he was asking for it to be removed. Jaemin felt a pain in his chest that he quickly reached his hand up to rub at it.

“Who told you this?” Yuta asked almost frantically.

“The spellbreaker that we went to, your highness,” the third member of the party, Johnny said in confusion. A quick glance over Mark and Jaehyun showed Jaemin that they were also confused with the reactions of the fairies. Jaemin was still trying to get over the shock of being told that the prince was under a binding spell.

“Someone cast a binding spell on you?” Yuta asked the Prince.

Jaehyun nodded his confirmation with a confused head tilt, “Why are you so shocked?”

“Because binding spells are one of the most sacred spells that a fairy can cast and the fact that someone cast it on you and you didn’t know is almost shocking,” Yuta said while rubbing his forehead with his hand. Jaemin stepped forward so that he could rest a hand on his brother’s back in support and comfort. He looked up and instantly locked eyes with a wide-eyed prince, and even though he looked away quickly, he still felt that pain in his chest return.

“What do you mean?” Johnny asked.

“Binding spells are something that fairies cast with a significant other that they want to be bonded to for life. Essentially marriage but more magical,” Yuta said in explanation, he smiled up at his younger brother in thanks before he turned back to look at the two humans and the sorcerer. 

“Can you remove it?” Jaehyun got straight to the point.

Yuta laughed loudly, “Removing a binding spell is physically taxing and dangerous. It could not only kill the fairy that cast it but it could also kill the party that received it. That’s why I think you’re wrong. You don’t have a binding spell cast on you.”

Jaehyun stepped forward in anger only stopping when Johnny’s hand reached out and held his arm, “Are you calling me a liar?”

“Yes,” Yuta said seriously, without an ounce of hesitation.

“How dare you,” Jaehyun said in offense.

“No, how dare you. You’re from a family that has been killing fairies for years and you have the audacity to ask us for help in removing a curse that’s not even a curse; it's the greatest gift in a fairy’s life,” Yuta retorted quickly with a spark in his eye. Jaemin held his breath as the prince and his brother had a staredown, the silence that fell over the room holding a significant amount of tension that made everyone feel uncomfortable. 

“I didn’t make the choice to have this spell cast over me,” Jaehyun said through gritted teeth. Jaemin saw Johnny’s hand resting on the Prince’s lower back and he realized just how frustrated the prince was from this situation. 

“When did you realize you had this spell cast on you?” Every head in the room snapped to Jaemin as he spoke. He knew that he was disobeying his brother by speaking, but he was always the more level headed brother and he was able to keep his emotions out of the situation. 

“A year and half ago. When my first couple suitors weren’t working out, we didn’t think anything of it but then every single suitor wasn’t working and we realized that something was wrong,” Jaehyun responded firmly. 

“There is a chance that you are cursed but it’s not a binding spell,” Jaemin said softly. He was hoping that he could calm things down and also solve this problem so the prince could be on his way. 

“How do you know that?” Jaehyun said harshly. 

“It just isn’t a binding spell. It can’t be. It’s not possible,” Jaemin rushes to explain. 

“How is it not possible? Your kind curses everyone else with these spells, what’s so different about a binding spell? Forcing someone to be with you forever.” Jaehyun was mad now and he was glaring at Jaemin with so much hate that it was making him begin to shrink in on himself. Jaemin noticed that it was Mark this time that was trying to get Jaehyun to stop and was looking extremely apologetic. 

“A binding spell can’t be forced onto an unwilling participant, you idiot,” Yuta interrupted, “Meaning that if you do miraculously have a binding spell placed on you, then you consented and were in love.”

“What?” Jaehyun asked shortly. 

“You can’t force a binding spell onto someone, it's a spell of love, not capture and abuse. Most things like that are about love, and not everything is a curse, so you can go and take your fairy prejudices and shove them up your as—,” Yuta was cut off as Jaemin quickly covered his mouth with his hand. 

“I’m so sorry. What my brother is trying to say is that binding spells for fairies are pure magic, meaning they can’t be used for anything evil. This helps keep abusive people out of situations where they could basically hold someone hostage,” Jaemin said in explanation while using magic to keep Yuta quiet for a bit longer. 

“How can you find out what is actually wrong?” Mark asked. 

Taking a deep breath, Jaemin walked towards the trio of travelers. He walked up to Jaehyun and looked him in the eyes, trying to find something in his soul that he could use. Not finding anything, Jaemin sighed, “We will just have to do a quick test.” 

He reached out his hand towards the prince and looked at him with a blank face. He saw Jaehyun look down and then look back up, “What the hell does that mean?”

“It means you need to take my hand, unless you would rather do the test with the grump.” Jaemin turned to see Yuta glaring at him, with his mouth still magiced shut. Turning back, he looked at the prince pointedly. 

“Fine. Do I just grab your hand?” Jaehyun asked while hesitating. 

“Yes. That’s all you have to do,” Jaemin responded. He watched as the prince slowly placed his hand into his.

Jaemin smiled and reached for the prince’s other hand, closing his eyes once he was holding both of them. He wills his mind to wander over Jaehyun, to look for any curses or spells that could have been cast on him. He knew what he was looking for — something dark, and yet, he couldn’t find any dark magic. He decided to look for gray then but Jaehyun appeared to be clear of gray magic as well. Jaemin knew that he shouldn’t be using his gift to look into people's light. That’s a personal thing that no one should ever try to go through, but Jaehyun is desperate and Jaemin can feel that. He pushes forward and instantly feels it. The warmth of undiscovered love. Love that sits. Waiting to be used at the right time for the right person. Jaemin wills his mind to look as deep as it can. 

He found it. He found something foreign, yet familiar. He reaches out to touch it and then his mind is shot back into his body and he falls down in shock. 

“How the hell?” Jaemin exclaimed while sitting on the floor. 

“Min!” Yuta said while rushing forward to help his brother up off the floor. 

“How in the hell did you do that?” Jaemin asked with wide eyes directed at Jaehyun. 

“What the hell are you talking about?” Jaehyun was instantly on the defense. 

“Jaemin, what happened?” Yuta asked worriedly. 

“He stole it,” Jaemin said weakly, “He stole it and he doesn’t even want it.”

“What did I steal? I have stolen nothing, how dare you accuse a prince!” Jaehyun said loudly while Johnny gasped at the accusations that Jaemin had presented. Mark looked at Jaemin in sympathy, seeming to have already figured out what Jaemin meant. 

“You stole my chance at a forever love,” Jaemin said back, just as loudly. He could feel Yuta freeze around him, clearly understanding the weight of his brother’s words. Jaemin pushed his brother off before bowing and quickly walking towards the door. He could hear the commotion behind him, but he needed to get out. Yangyang quickly opened the door for his friend before following Jaemin out of the room. 

“What do you need?” Yangyang asked softly.

“I need to go see Yong,” Jaemin whispered out and he saw Yangyang nodding out of the corner of his eye.

“I’ll let Yuta know,” Yangyang responded, pushing Jaemin’s back so that he would move forward. “Go ask your question Min. Go and try to find answers.”

Jaemin nodded before quickly taking off down the hall heading towards the Dragon’s Cave, praying that they wouldn’t actually be cryptic and that they would give him an actual answer to his question. He knew that he was just going to get more frustrated if he was around Jaehyun for any longer than he needed to be. 

He had apparently zoned out enough that he hadn’t even noticed that he had arrived at the palace’s entrance to the cave. Jaemin took a deep breath before walking through the entryway. He was instantly chilled from the temperature change and he shivered slightly before adjusting to the cold. He snapped his fingers so that he could create a spark of light that quickly expanded so that he could see where he placed his steps. 

Jaemin glanced around the cave before closing his eyes and using his magic to reach out to his mentor. Calling a dragon with one’s mind was a difficult thing that few are successful at, and yet Jaemin had always succeeded. He smirked slightly when he heard the flap of wings as a dragon appeared in front of the young fairy. 

“Jaemin. You’re in distress,” Yong observed.

“The prince arrived today, and I discovered what was wrong with him,” Jaemin declared with a slight tremor in his voice. The fact that he was going to have to say these words out loud made him fear the reality of it all.

“And I expect that you didn’t like what you discovered,” Yong said with a knowing tone.

“Do you already know what I’m about to say?” Jaemin questioned.

“I do,” the dragon admitted.

“I’m bonded to him,” Jaemin finally said the words out loud — words that meant more than he wanted to admit.

“Yes, you are. Your heart, magic, and soul are all bonded to a mortal,” Yong stated with a matter of fact tone that caused Jaemin to wince.

“I understand that, Yong, but how? It’s actually impossible for us to be bonded when I have never cast my binding spell. How can I be bonded to someone that I don’t love?” Jaemin said sadly.

“You might have not cast the spell but the spell was still cast,” Yong explained.

“But how? That’s not how binding spells work. That’s not how pure magic works,” Jaemin cried out, really hoping that the dragon would see his desperation for answers and take pity on him.

“It’s how soul magic works though.” With those words Yong effectively caused Jaemin to freeze and look at the dragon in fear and shock. Jaemin doesn’t know much about soul magic, except how powerful it is and what it actually insinuated.

“Soul magic. Are you saying that we’ve been bonded since birth?” Jaemin whispered. Yong nodded and it caused the young fairy to collapse in confusion. He had a soulmate and he was a mortal that came from a murderous family. That’s the luck that Jaemin seemed to always have. He let out a sob when the weight of the realization finally caught up with him. 

“Min,” Jaemin heard his brother say in confusion before he was wrapped up in a hug. He quickly turned his head so that he could sob into his brother's neck. 

He knew that Yong and Yuta were communicating about him but he couldn’t be bothered to get involved in the conversation. Soulmates were rare and they were even rarer for a magical creature such as a fairy, since that required a different kind of magic to work with a fairy’s normal magic. His fairy magic was united with soul magic and it gave him a soulmate that had no magic. His soulmate was a human — and he was confused. 

He was supposed to have a choice on who he got bonded too, but the choice had never been there. 

The universe made his decision for him, and he couldn’t get out of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> twitter: @sincerelyjeno

**Author's Note:**

> twitter: @sincerelyjeno


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